Historical Marker · No. 206
El Adobe de los Robles Rancho
Lemoore, Kings County · California
Erected by California Centennials Commission; Kings County Centennials Committee, 1950
When Daniel Rhoads built this house in 1856 it stood near the shore of Tulare Lake, the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi and the home of the Tachi Yokuts, whose Santa Rosa Rancheria is near Lemoore. The lake was drained for farming in the decades that followed, and the house has outlasted it; floodwater spread back across the old lakebed as recently as 2023. The bronze spells him Rhoades. He had refused the Donner Party's shortcut in 1846 and went back into the snow the next winter with the first relief.
What the plaque says
El Adobe de Los Robles Rancho This restored adobe, second oldest in San Joaquin Valley, built by Daniel Rhoades who came to California in 1846 by overland caravan. Rhoades and his brother, John, among organizers of first expedition to rescue Donner party at Donner Lake. Adobe built in 1856, has had continued occupancy since. State Registered Landmark No. 206 Tablet placed by California Centennials Commission. Base furnished by Kings County Centennials Committee Dedicated February 4, 1950
Where it stands
36.32772, -119.80876 · Directions
More markers nearby
- Location of the Famous Mussel Slough Tragedy — 7.0 mi
- Kingston — 9.2 mi